1. Field of the Invention
The invention concerns a device and a method for processing a robot control program.
2. Description of the Prior Art
The movement path of the center of a tool connected with the robot (thus the tool center point (TCP)) is designated as a robot path of a robot while, insofar as the position of the robot itself is discussed in the following, the position of the base or the pedestal of the robot or, respectively, of the zero point of the robot or global coordinate system is designated relative to the path. The points in the path course that have been taught or programmed offline and normally serve as support points for interpolation of the goods course between these points (for example in the scope of a spine interpolation) are designated as support points of a robot path or, respectively, a path course.
EP 0 852 346 discloses a device to display a robot program, with a memory device to store the robot program; a display device at which a position can be designated with a pointer device; and with a processing device to display a work interval and an air intersection interval as successive lines, with presentation of one of the lines if this is designated by the pointer device, wherein the presentation corresponds to a command for a work priority in the robot program in connection with one of the displayed lines.
Given use of industrial robots, it frequently occurs that data from support points of an existing robot control program (abbreviated as: robot program) must be changed. This can result from a modification requirement for an existing robot program, for example when the module to be processed has been slightly modified. However, point data must also frequently be adapted in order to achieve a required clock time. These point corrections are normally conducted “online”, i.e. while the robot program is executed.
In order to conduct such an “online correction” of a point in space, knowledge of a reference system is required of the robot controller. In this simplest case, this is the global coordinate system of the robot. However, an (external) tool coordinate system or an otherwise defined coordinate system is also frequently used. A point correction can then be conducted relative to this; but the user must thereby translate the actual correction direction and correction size of the point relative to the robot path into corresponding X, Y and Z values of the local reference system.
The correct values to be input can hardly be intuitively determined by the operator since the reference system at the point to be corrected is not visible. In practice, for the most part multiple iterations are required for adaptation of the X, Y and Z values in order to exactly achieve the desired point correction. It is clear that this method has a large potential for error due to its initial imprecision.
It is known to register graphically represented path points by means of an optical system such as a light intersection sensor, wherein an adaptation of path points of the robot program ensues via graphical editing and, for changes to graphical 2D representations, are converted back into a 3D position change and are transferred into the robot program. However, no support is thereby given to the user with regard to the classification and orientation of a path point to be edited in the course of the robot path.